


what we give

by tospreadthewingsofthesoul



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-13 03:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16009334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tospreadthewingsofthesoul/pseuds/tospreadthewingsofthesoul
Summary: It’s easy to want something. Everyone wants something. What’s hard is this: “What are you willing to give for it?” That is who you are.





	1. Harrow

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all! Like so many of you, TDP has consumed my soul. It took me a while to decide what i wanted to write, until I found a through-line with all these characters: they all want something, and they’re all willing to sacrifice for it. So this is that story.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let’s start with the obvious, shall we?

He had known, when he had married Sarai, that he would be responsible for the kingdom if anything were ever to happen to her. 

More than that, he would be responsible for her family. Their family. 

He had known it, but he had not planned for it. Sarai was invincible, unflinching. Only her own sister could match her skill on the battlefield, and no one at all could match her burning wisdom and compassion. He had been awe-struck, still watching her with wide eyes even years after their wedding. He had not ever truly believed, in his heart of hearts, that she could die. 

So instead of spending his time with people that would surely never need him, he had spent it all on her. Even when she was away, he had devoted himself to supporting her. Whatever fights with ambassadors and officials she was too busy for, he took on. Whatever logistics and preparations she was forced to delegate, he took charge of. When she had to leave their little Ezran in his care, he did everything he could to reassure her that Ezran would grow up loved and safe and happy. He had always been impressed with Callum, fond of him- but Callum hadn’t needed him the way that Sarai did. 

Well, he had made his choices. Many of them had been wrong. More had simply been poor. In his grief and his anger, he had fought. He carried the weight of blood and death and conflict that he could not take back. Even that weight was not more than the way that Callum stared up at him now, uncertain and tentative, wanting more than what Harrow had ever taken the time to give him. Harrow knew now, in a way he had ignored in his youth, that being absently kind was not enough. He should have been there. 

And still he could not bring himself to choose Callum and Ezra over the kingdom. Sarai’s kingdom. He could not abandon her legacy, not even for his own sons. He had to believe that Amaya would find them, that she could be for them what he never could. 

This is what he had agreed to. This is what he could give her.


	2. Claudia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I just love my magic daughter.

It had taken Claudia years to realize the compromises she was making. Even now, when the thought occurred she flitted by it. It was worth it, wasn’t it? Knowing the secrets of the magical world, watching her father’s surprise and pleasure each time she mastered some new arcane skill. 

If she spent most of her time lost in the library, well, that would’ve been her choice anyway. If she spent less time poking Soren than she once had, well, he was more annoying than he had been when they were children. 

If the people of the castle watched her with growing suspicion, then outright fear, well. She wasn’t doing this for them, was she?

She was doing it for herself. She had to remind herself of that, sometimes. When the magic left her gasping and shaky, she just needed to remind herself to slow down a little. When her tired eyes swam and her hands shook, she just had to remember to rest. When occasionally her conscious twinged when she left a magical creature dying behind her... She was only doing what she had to do. 

Truly, she loved her work. 

There was no point in examining why.


	3. Runaan

Runaan was not one for denial. That was something they’d taught him early- if you’re too brittle, you’ll break. So he doesn’t stamp down the wave of fear that always sweeps over him when he leaves his husband at home to wait for him. He lets his hand linger on the doorframe and is always sure the last thing he says is, “I love you.”

He never pretends that Rayla is anything other than the daughter of his heart. It is a peculiar kind of grief, that she will have to follow in his footsteps. She too will have to learn to shoulder the shame and uncertainty and regret that will follow her all her life. She too will have to learn to harden her heart. 

The weight of that pain would crush him if he tried to carry it. So instead, he takes a deep breath, lets himself feel it. He breathes out, and the hurt doesn’t dissipate, but it does settle. It’s no longer a burden- it’s a tether. It’s the thing that ties him to his people, to his cause, the same way gravity goes him to the ground. 

He remembers his husband, still sleep soft and lonely. He remembers Rayla with her first set of sticks, jabbing and chattering and joyous. This is what the promise of peace is worth.


End file.
